Improved car-brake and starter



J. A. COLE.

Car Starter and Brake.-

Patented July 27, 1869.

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Letters Patent No. 93,059, dated July 27, 1869.

IMPROVED CAR-BRAKE AND STARTER..

The Schedule referred to in these Letters Patent and making part of theeame.

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, J Aarms A. Conn, of Adams, in the county of J ei'erson, and State of New York, have inventeda new and useful Improvement in Devices for Stopping and Starting Street-0ars; and I do herebydeclare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, which are made part of this specification.

I employ one or more springs, of suitable form and material, attached -to a separate shaft beneath the car, connected to one or' both axles by suitable gearing, and operating -in one condition of the gearing, by being wound up on its shaft, to stop the car; and, on the Vgearing being shifted, by its resiliency to start or assist' in starting it, its shaft, on the completion of its action in starting the car, being automatically thrown ont of gear with the axle or axles, so as to prevent its being strained.

My invention consistsin a novel combination of parts for facilitating the connection and disconnection ofthe spring-shaft and axle, as required, and in a provision, of novel construction, for automatically throwing the device out of gear. j

In the drawings- Figure 1 represents a plan view of the bed-frame and running-gearof a car provided with my improved stopping and starting-mechanism, the latter being shown applied to one axle only, and provision made .for its application to the other, when desired.

Figure 2 is a vertical longitudinal section of the same, on the line x x, lig.,1.

Figures 3 and 4 are vertical transverse sections of the same, on the lines y y and z z, iig. 1. A represents the bed-frame of the car, B B the axles, and

Gthe wheels.

.D represents a metallic shaft, 'supported in lsuitable bearings in theframe A, and preferably-arranged longitudinally of the car, at a central point between the wheels, and ina horizontal position, as shown.

The shaft D is provided, on its end adjoining the axle to which the provision is to be applied, with a mitre gear-wheel, E, keyed thereon, and meshing ,al- .ternately, in the double operation of the device; with corresponding gears F F', on the axle B. These gears F F are connected to the axle by meansof splines, so as to allow of their sliding longitudinally on the axle, but cause them to rotate in unison' therewith.

They are pressed apart by a spring,`G, coiled around the axle, 0r applied in othersuitable form between them, and their distcnsionis limited by means of stops b' on'the axle, as shown, or on the frame.

In their distended position, the gears F and F' are bothout of mesh with E; To enable them to be thrown into gear as desired, the gears F F' are conoperate them, and supported on a plate, or bar, J, i

spanning the frame A over the axle, and guided in a path in line'with the axis of' the axle, by slots j j", as shown.

The levers I I are pivoted, at l t', to the frame, and engage with the forks H Hi at intermediate points, and may have the power applied to them, directly or through suitable connection, atv their outer end, to shift the gears. The molvementof either of the levers lI I' toward the middle ofthe cars, brings the gears F or F' into mesh with E.

K represents a streng spiral or helical spring, of steel or other suitable material, attached at one end to the frame A, and at the other to the shaft D, as represented most clearly in fig. 4.

With the Varrangement shown, the gear F being in mesh with the gear E on vsaid shaft D, asrepresented,

and the car being drawn inthe direction indicated by the arrow, the continued motion of the car willtend to wind up said spring en the shaft, .the increased power required to do this retarding and finally stopping the movement of the car. .The lever I' being then pressed toward the centre, so as tov bring the 'gear F into mesh with E, and the 'lever I released, the spring G, by the increased pressure it is made to exert by its compression, will throw F out of gear, and the accumulated force ofthe spring K will then be exerted to start the car in the direction it was originally pursuing, the relative directions at which the axle and the spring-shaft rotate being reversed by said shifting of the gearing. Were the parts allowed to remain iir this position, the continued forward movement of the car, after the spring has fully uncoiled, would cause it to again stop the car, by its being wound on its shaft `Ain an opposite direction from that trst described, which motion would, besides, impair, andperhaps break the spring.

To prevent this, and' to automatically', throw the gears out of mesh at the proper mo|nent,a supplementary lever is employed, fulcrumed atl, and con' nected with `the lever` I to its fork H', by which the gear F (the one in gear-in starting) is engaged. Saidlever L is extended `to within asuitable distance of the shaft D, and is there provided with an oblique or in clined .bearing-face, l', for the engagement of an inclined or cam surface, m, of a traversing-nut, M, the.l

engagement of which with said lever through the described connectons" throws said gear Ii" out of mesh with E, and thus severs the connection between the uated by 4means of a screwthread, d, formed on the shaft D, as represented in g. 2, and so arranged as to advance said nut in the motion of unwinding the spring, and to retract it in winding `up the spring.

The device may be applied in the saine manner to both axles, if desired. 'lhis would be the preferable mode, the devices being so arranged as that one `set (the front) should operate in the manner described in each direction.

lVith the single device, as shown, the car would have to be turned in running back, so as to cause its axles to run always in the one direction. A single device could, however, be adapted tooperate, as described, in both directions, by the addition of suitable gearing.

Then the device is applied to both axles, o'ne spring and spring-shaft may sei-ve for both, as indicated in figs. 1 and 2, orptwo spring-shafts may be employed, if preferred, und in either case two or more springs may bev employed.

When desired, the mechanism, instead of being mounted in a frame, as described, may be attached being supported in suitable hangers.

Having thus described my invention, the following is what'l claim as new therein, and-desire to secure i purpose set forth.

3. The traversing-nut M, operated by means of the screw el on the spring-shaft D E, and provided with the cam-surface m, in combination with thellever L, gear F', and shaft B, substantially as and for the pur pose described.

JAMES A. COLE.

Witnesses FRIEND Lewis, Gao. C. HUNTINGTON. 

